Social and Solidarity Economy: Our common road towards Decent ...

SOCIAL AND SOLIDARITY ECONOMY ACADEMY
Foreword
After the financial crisis in 2007-2008, some regions and countries, notably in Asia and Latin America,
witnessed encouraging and rapid signs of recovery in their real economy, in terms of employment and poverty
reduction. Nevertheless, since the sovereign debt crisis in Europe that started with the Greek episode in
mid-2010 and the continuing balance sheet recession in the United States, the world has entered a new phase
of global financial, economic and social crisis. In a context of major social and economic imbalances and
ever-growing instability, the ILO, with the support of many other stakeholders, advocates more equitable and
fair globalization, with decent work at the centre of public policy.
The ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization, adopted by the International Labour Conference
in June 2008, already recognized that “productive, profitable and sustainable enterprises, together with a
strong social economy and a viable public sector, are critical to sustainable economic development and
employment opportunities”. Indeed, the social and solidarity economy plays a significant and growing role in
the real economy, by providing employment, social protection and other social and economic benefits. In the
same vein, the Global Jobs Pact (2009) recognized that "cooperatives provide jobs in our communities from
very small businesses to large multinationals".
Because of their distinctive features and comparative advantages, including democratic governance and
autonomous management, social and solidarity economy enterprises and organizations are encouraged by an
increasing number of States. Policy frameworks for the development of the social and solidarity economy at
the national and regional levels are being set up across the world. This builds on partnerships among governments,
social partners and civil society. It is also happening in countries in Latin America. For instance, policy and
legal reforms are taking place in Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru to acknowledge the role that cooperatives and
other social and solidarity economy organizations play in reducing poverty and promoting social inclusion.
Today, the social and solidarity economy is a reality in many people´s lives because it promotes values and
principles that focus on people’s needs and on their communities. In a spirit of voluntary participation,
self-help and self-reliance, and through enterprises and organizations, it seeks to balance economic success
with fairness and social justice, from the local level to the global level. In Canada, where this second Academy
is taking place, over 30% of the population are members of cooperatives. In Brazil, cooperatives produce three
quarters of the wheat and 40% of the milk, and cooperative exports bring in over US$ 1.3 billion.
Promoting the social economy means contributing to each dimension of the Decent Work Agenda. Enterprises
and organizations in the social and solidarity economy create and sustain jobs and livelihoods, extend social
protection, strengthen and extend social dialogue to all workers, and promote the application and enforcement
of standards for all. In this time of crisis and instability, the promotion of the social and solidarity economy, within
the Decent Work Agenda framework, is an efficient way to promote social justice and social inclusion in all regions.
The ILO has been a pioneer in promoting the social and solidarity economy. In 1920, the ILO Director-General,
Albert Thomas, created a Cooperative Branch, now the ILO Cooperative Programme. In the 1980s, the ILO
developed the concept of ‘social finance’, and by the end of the 1990s it had become a pioneer in supporting
the development of mutual benefit societies to extend social protection. In 2001, the ILC reached a “New
Consensus” on social security that gave the highest priority to extending coverage to those that had none,
leading the ILO to further increase its support to community-based protection schemes and mutual benefit
societies. In 2002, after the adoption of the recommendation 193 on the promotion of cooperatives, the ILO
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